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Colorado Renaissance Festival delayed

Coronavirus concerns postpones bawdy south Douglas County event

Entertainers greet people from above as they pass through the gates of the Colorado Renaissance Festival castle in July 2019.

Jessica Gibbs

Posted
Wednesday, April 29, 2020 10:36 am

Mark Harden
mharden@coloradocommunitymedia.com

The Colorado Renaissance Festival -- a popular summer attraction that draws throngs to south Douglas County -- has been postponed for several weeks because of the coronavirus pandemic and will now start Aug. 1, organizers said.

The festival in Larkspur, midway between Denver and Colorado Springs west of Interstate 25, had been scheduled to open its 43rd anniversary season on June 13.

"Due to the current health concerns and taking into consideration the safety of our patrons and Renaissance community the Colorado Renaissance Festival will be postponing its 2020 opening day," says a notice on the festival's website.

"The new dates will be Saturday August 1st, 2020 for 8 weekends with a closing day of Sunday, September 20th, 2020. Dates will be posted publicly on both our website and announced through our social media outlets," the notice says. "Please stay safe during these unsettling times and we look forward to seeing everyone soon!"

The festival, set in a faux-16th century Tudor village, celebrates Renaissance culture with a bawdy mix of shows and music, jousting matches, animals, costumed characters, games, food and drinks. It's one of dozens of similarly themed events staged across the country each summer.

The festival typically draws about 200,000 attendees during its run, The Gazette reports.

The announcement comes as "stay at home" orders are being gradually relaxed across Douglas County and most other parts of Colorado, but people are still being urged to practice social distancing and to avoid crowds larger than 10 people to help contain the spread of COVID-19.

“We are disgusted by the behavior of the officers in Minnesota,” Douglas County Sheriff Tony Spurlock told members of the Senate State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee. “Those were bad cops, and if they work for any sheriff in this room they would have been fired just the same.”